I hope this letter finds you and your families well; A Friday update for you, as always, as we reach the end of the half term.
We have had to contend with a fair bit this half term, for example, cold weather, shorter days and inherent darkness, as well as the loss of our playground space. The vast majority of our students have coped extremely well with these challenges though, and I thank and commend them for this. It has been nice to feel the sun on our faces again, once the fog lifted, this week and I am reminded of sunnier, warmer and brighter times ahead. I look forward to seeing the daffodils bloom at the front of our school in the coming weeks as Spring approaches.
A typically busy week in school with vaccinations, a re-arranged lower school disco (complete with balloons, a dance off and musical statues), non-uniform day and the Shakespeare residential to Stratford-upon-Avon, to name but a few.
We have been shocked and upset by the events unfolding in Southern Turkey and Northern Syria though, and observed a two-minute silence, for those that have been killed in the natural disaster. We will also be donating a proportion of the non-uniform money raised to the Turkey & Syria Earthquake Emergency Appeal, which is being run by Islamic Relief UK Turkiye and Syria Earthquake Appeal - Donate | Islamic Relief UK
It has been pleasing to see and hear our peripatetic music offer return to Kelmscott. Students have shown a strong interest in learning the piano, and the demand for these lessons has been consistently high. We are fortunate to have access to high-quality peripatetic music lessons through the Waltham Forest Music Service, these have allowed each student to progress at their own pace. In addition, after the half term, we are delighted to have an independent singing teacher coming into school to offer lessons to students. If any families would like further information about this offer, please speak to Mr Hill, our lead teacher for Music. I am excited to see students further develop their musical abilities and see their sense of accomplishment grow in the coming months.
There are multi-sport activities taking part at Leyton Orient over the half term holidays; details can be found here
Families might also be interested in the Waltham Forest Community Hub day on the 17th February with advice available on a multitude of topics, such as the cost of living crisis, details can be found here
Junior Bake Off have been in contact, they are looking for the UKs best young bakers for their next show. If there are any talented bakers in our midst, now might be your chance. More details can be found here
Well done to Fatima Iman in 9M who topped the rewards points charts this week with twenty-eight; keep up the good work.
After the half term break we will be busy organising the end of year trips, for years 7-10, to Adventure Island in Southend. If you haven’t already downloaded the MyEd app and connected to your cashless account, please do so during the break, in readiness for this fantastic trip opportunity.
I wish you all a fun but restful half term, we look forward to seeing students back in school on Monday 20th February at the usual time. A reminder that Options Evening for Year 9 is on the first Thursday back, the 23rd February.
Yours sincerely
Mr Sam Jones
Headteacher